Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Zhi Tea
Tea Description:
Zhi exclusive.
This exquisite black tea from Fujian Province in China has become the favorite at Zhi. If you like the rich complexity of a classic Chinese black tea with all the hallmark smoothness and depth, be prepared to be enchanted. This is a top-grade exclusive tea with a major wow factor.
Thin, twisted leaves present a deep rich red cup with distinct caramelized sugar and chocolate notes and a long creamy finish. Mouthfeel, mouthfeel, mouthfeel.
If you like a great Keemun or a Gold Yunnan then you will love this tea.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
It took me a while to warm up to China black teas. When I began my tea drinking journey I often found these teas to be… lacking. In my mind the black teas from China were a finicky, touchy lot that required absolute precision in the measurement of the tea leaves and the steep time, and even then the resulting infusion was just okay. Now I know it was the quality of the tea I was using that was yielding a poor cup. Once I started drinking higher quality tea my love for black teas from China grew by leaps and bounds. I was introduced to a world of nuances and flavors that I hadn’t experienced in a tea before. I am now a card carrying tea fiend, and China black teas are often found in my teapot. The latest one to find its way into my pot is Gong Fu Black from Zhi.
When it comes to quality organic tea Zhi delivers a wonderful product. Their Gong Fu Black is a delightfully complex tea full of chocolate, baked bread, grain, and nutty notes. There is also a natural sweetness which brings out a lovely fruity flavor. The tea is smooth and full bodied which makes this a wonderful breakfast tea, but I must say that I also really like this in the afternoon. It’s a nice pick-me-up should that mid-afternoon slump hit. Also, this tea re-steeps like a dream which is always a plus in my book.
My favorite way to prepare this tea is using 1 teaspoon of leaves per 8 ounces of 205° F water and letting the leaves steep for 3 minutes, 30 seconds. Over steeping can cause some astringency, but I have let this tea steep for as long as 4 minutes, 45 seconds with great results. A longer steep really brings out the deeper roasted grain notes in the tea. Yum.
It’s fun to look back at my tea journey and see how much I’ve learned. I’ve gone from not liking China black teas to counting many of them among the tastiest teas I’ve tried. Zhi’s Gong Fu Black easily falls into that category. It’s a tea worth checking out.
Imperial Grade Bai Lin Gong Fu Black Tea from Yunnan Sourcing
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black Tea
Where to Buy: Yunnan Sourcing
Tea Description:
Bai Lin (lit. White Forest) Gong Fu black tea is made from Fuding Bai Hao “White Pekoe” varietal tea leaves. Our Imperial grade is a tippy grade, meaning only the smallest tips and leaf budlets are picked. This picking has to be done in few short days in spring to obtain the tenderest of shoots.
The brewed tea is packed with flavor and aroma. There is a kind of dried longan fruit dark and pungent sweetness which juxtaposed against a low subtle bitterness that provides a real complex and lively drinking experience!
Spring 2014 harvest (Late April)
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
The hot weather has finally hit the UK in full force as we experience a heat wave. It’s times like this that I tend to crave green tea and Oolong in general but lately I’ve found myself craving some black tea. That’s when I remembered about my sample of this from March – Yunnan Sourcing – Premium Club. I know what you’re thinking, “But Kitty, that was months ago!”. And yes it was, but if I’m honest I just haven’t been in the mood for black tea. I have had some in that time to try and de stash but I’m sure most of you understand what it’s like, you fall in love with one tea and similar types and before you know it your fancy has changed and you end up pushing the pre loved tea towards the back of the cupboard. So after such a long wait I am looking forward to finally trying this.
Once the tea leaves are free from their silver packet I can note some gold tips among a dark brown base tone. The leaves are rather thinly rolled and average roughly 4mm in length. A nice mixture of size to be frank, some small and some large but most being similar and meeting in the middle. This deep, Autumn feeling tea has a dry and wooden scent with a touch of sweet malt and cocoa.
Steeping parameters:
Leaf – Approx 7g
Method: Gaiwan 100ml
Water: 100C – Boiling
Rinse: 5 seconds
Steep One – 30 seconds
Golden brown colour with rich sweet wood and malt scent.
Flavour is dry and sweet with wood, malt, date, brown sugar and soft leather notes. Wonderful combination of flavours there and each bowl offers more and more. They blend in very well and linger in the after taste. The only downside is the dryness which is rather thick in my opinion, especially for a first steep.
Steep Two – 1 minutes
A little stronger but still well balanced in terms of flavours, most of which remain for the second steep. The notable characteristics of this steep being: The malt is thick but seems to have smoothed out slightly and is less sweet, the dryness in the after taste has also dissipated a lot and on the whole it tastes better balanced compared to the first steep. Meaning that this steep the flavours are less surprising and less temperamental. That makes this my favourite steep from the two so far. Also the after taste is very much date and prune like, it’s delicious!
Steep Three – 2 minutes
Notes: Softer scent and colour is light golden brown.
Flavour is also softer in this steep, which cuts out a few of the previous notes. Dominance being embraced by the malt and wood tones in particular. Also the date flavour is still present but rather soft at this point. The after taste no longer lingers as such which has been replaced by some sourness. Only a touch of sourness though, nothing drastic and not enough to claim it is bitter.
Steep Four – 3 minutes
An increase in sourness and decrease in strength (as I was predicting). Though despite that the dryness is not as bad in this steep and it still has a nice malt and wood finish. Still enough flavour to be pleasing and on the whole remains fairly smooth for the most part. I would also say that with the sourness it reminds me of light tobacco notes rather than leather.
Steep Five – 4 minutes
Note – I honestly thought it would end on steep four but I felt there was enough flavour left for this steep ie steep five. A pleasant surprise 🙂
Yes, this is my final steep but it was worth having that one extra. Albeit soft and light, there is some sweet malt tones that remain with a mild sour finish and a touch of dryness in the after taste. I feel that completed my drinking experience perfectly.
Summary:
This black tea had a wonderful burst of flavours at the beginning and it slowly began to soften. With the main flavours throughout being: Wood, Sweet malt and date; this made for a delicious and rather special black tea. I have tried a few sources for Bai Lin Gong Fu and I believe this is my favourite so far. Reason being that it had the wide array of beautiful notes that for the most part remained consistent and pleasing, plus I found the strength was about right for my personal liking. Not to mention that this actually went very well with the heat wave thanks to the fruit tones.
Now I regret keeping it in my possession for so long without trying it sooner! I suppose all it means is that for right here, right now this is ‘my kinda cuppa’.
Golden Dragon Yellow Tea from Teavana
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Yellow
Where to Buy: Teavana
Tea Description:
We are proud to offer one of the rarest teas in the world; our limited edition yellow tea direct from China. The name ‘yellow’ tea refers not only to the unique processing and the lovely, bright golden infusion color, but due to its rarity it is also associated with the imperial yellow worn exclusively by emperors for centuries. Unlike any tea you have tasted before, at first sip it evokes the exquisite pleasure of everyday luxuries. Captivating high floral notes mingle with a smooth honeyed body and a subtle creamy, buttery finish. A perfectly balanced tea curated just for you.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
First a brief disclaimer of sorts;
I am NOT a fan of Teavana. I have never purchased a blend from them and likely never will. However, this has absolutely nothing to do with the blends they sell themselves.While the store serves it’s purpose of acting as an introductory loose leaf tea shop, for which I am grateful (as I’m sure they’ve turned many people on to drinking loose leaf tea) I cannot personally support their business model nor will I give money to a company with such consistently reported poor customer service.
Any of their teas that I’ve ever tried has been received as a sample, and not purchased out of my own pockets. That said, I’ve never let my personal views of the company’s business model affect the way I perceive their teas. This has meant occasionally finding a great blend but not pursuing a revisit, which can be disappointing, but is something I can live with. As for this tea, I’m going to review it as if I didn’t know the company from which it was sourced and give my opinion PURELY about the tea itself.
And so carrying on…
Visually, the dry leaf of this blend looked like somewhat tarnished, lightly browned Yin Zhen (Silver Needle tea) but a little more twisty. Steeped up, the liquor is a very flat, dull golden yellow. It’s very beautiful, even if it’s not a more lively looking liquor. Personally, I’ve only had three or four other plain yellow teas and they’ve been prepared in blue teaware, so I can’t really use my personal experiences to say whether this colour is normal for steeped up yellow tea though. The aroma is interesting; it’s soft with a bit of a buttery vegetal smell and some malt and sweeter notes as well.
Drinking this, it was really apparent to me that the nuances of flavor take after traditional Yin Zhen and Green Tea pretty equally; of course that makes sense given that yellow tea is halfway between white and green tea. I could actually tell it was produced in China without reading the description though; China’s green teas tend to have a more distinct smokey and nutty flavor to them while Japanese greens lean more heavily on the marine side of this (seaweed) and the flavors here weren’t an exception to that. On the greener end of the spectrum, I noticed very gentle smokey notes, buttery vegetal notes, a bit of a peppery flavor leaning towards lemon pepper more so than black pepper (or the actual vegetable; bell pepper, etc.), and some less distinct herbaceous notes as well. That lovely peppery quality definitely falls in line with other yellow teas I’ve been lucky enough to sample.
On the whiter side of things; there was a lovely supple sweetness that reminded me of honey or, combined with the weaker floral tones present, honeysuckle. A more vague hay-like flavour was present, and a flavor that kind of crossed over between malt and cream with a soft fruity edge; very similar to some of the Kenyan white teas I’ve gotten to try. I like to describe that flavor as kind of tasting like a Hot Cross Bun/Easter bun, in a way.
This was a super interesting tea, and I loved all the flavors present that bounced off one another; I’ve only gotten to try a few different yellow teas, and this isn’t my least favourite but it’s not my favourite either: so far Camellia Sinensis’ Meng Ding Huang Ya is my favourite. Both this tea and CS’s heavy big price tags; but with the quality difference I’d go with CS’s yellow tea. However, I think this is definitely worth trying if you get the chance because it WAS lovely.
Flaming Prince Charming White Tea from T-We Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: T-We Tea
Tea Description:
Have you ever met the man of your dreams; that perfect guy who you want to spend the rest of your life with… only to then have him introduce you to his husband? Ugh… Happily Ever After is SO hard these days! We completely understand. Don’t worry, gay BFFs are way more fun! Introducing the deliciously desirable Flaming Prince Charming. This soft and delicate White Peony is the perfect balance of milky coconut ribbons and refreshing cardamom spice. It’s like a fairy tale for the modern princess.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Sometimes when I try new tea companies, it can be a gamble. It’s hard out there for peeps in the tea biz. We are all united by our love for the beverage, but a lot of us need part time jobs. Not everyone has the attention grabbing thing to get new customers on board. Coming across T-We’s website, I definitely found it. It came in the form of the tagline for this tea:
Spoiler Alert: All the Good Ones are Gay
I was not expecting the hilarious tea names and their corresponding descriptions! I can’t decide if I like The Worst or Scandalous Manfriend the best. All of their teas are handblended, and uproarious and very youthful. I’m really glad to have stumbled past this small store.
On to the tea! The dry leaf is has a LOT of coconut. There are some scattered large green cardamom pods, as well as thin fuzzy silver needle. I used to be obsessed with coconut teas, but somewhere along the line, I grew tired of the taste, and even grossed out at times. But inhaling the steeping leaves, it smells fresher that other coconut teas I have tried, and the aroma is like fresh coconut milk exactly. I am still a coconut freak. I go crazy for coconut in all of its forms in anything I can get my hands on, candles, beauty products, food… except tea. Will this be the coconut tea to win me back? Let’s find out!
The brew is a mellow golden sunshine color, and smells like coconut cardamom heaven. The mouthfeel is nice a heavy, it’s quite easy to drink. The hay and honey notes of the white tea are definitely on the back burner of this tea, with the coconut and cardamom taking over. I am loving how sweet this tea is, as well as the lack of astringency. This is definitely not one of those toasted coconut flavor profiles, this tea tastes like thick and creamy coconut milk, just as it is about to hit cooked white rice for coconut rice pudding. I am definitely a fan of this kind of shredded coconut, it delivers a fresher punch than any other coconut tea that I have tried. (On a side note, this tea goes great with the talented Harry Belafonte song of the same subject matter. If you are feeling fruity.)
I suggest that you go take a look on their website! T-We tea is a fun site to browse, whether or not you plan to buy tea from them, or just laugh uncontrollably, it’s a solid choice on a small scale tea shop!
Toffee Dream White Tea from Zen Tea Life
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White Tea
Where to Buy: Zen Tea Life
Tea Description:
The nutty toasty flavor from the toffee. It smells lovely toffee and looks pretty with lots of yellowish green soft buds mixed with blue corn flower. Recommend for someone that loves a light, sweet, and nutty tea. Must try teas for white tea lovers.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Zen Tea Life is an excellent company. Funny enough, I have yet to try any tea from them. I usually go with their teaware, which are really cute and cheap! Their slabs of Korean cedar are a fixture on my tea tray.
This tea hails from a friend on Steepster who did a mystery box sale a while back. The box took a detour to another user’s place before making it back to me. Luckily, there was no problem fixing the problem and in no time I had a perfectly packed cube filled with tea treasures at my door. The only thing is, I had forgotten that I had asked for a box in the first place. It took me a hot minute to noodle out where the box of insane samples came from. Thank goodness I love surprises!
White Toffee Dream was the first sample I tried out of the box. I was very intrigued, I have never had a toffee tea with a white base before. I picked it out because of it’s visual appeal; the cornflower and the big chunks of caramel substance looked awesome against the backdrop of the Bai Mu Dan.
Brewing the tea made the toffee pieces melt in slow motion. The aroma really filled the room. Who needs scented candles or air fresheners when you can just brew a cup of tea? Using 4g in a 16oz mug with 90c water produced a unique cup. The toffee was not doubt there, and an interesting floral and hay rounding out the notes. I do get a candy sequence I get strong notes of graham cracker that follows the toffee. Like a toffee cheesecake almost?
While I agree that black tea may have mad a better choice for this flavor, it’s just so… pedestrian. Zen tea life made a good choice going with a white tea base. It’s different, and worth a try, even if I wouldn’t think about stocking it any time soon.